Here's how leaders across political parties welcomed Wing Commander Abhinanadan Varthaman on his return to India.
The officer was involved in a dog fight with Pakistani fighter aircraft and was awarded a Shaurya Chakra for taking down an F-16 combat aircraft during the engagement.
At present, Wg Cdr Varthaman is serving at an IAF base in Rajasthan.
By naming my son as Abhinandan, we will keep him reminding about the valour of the pilot and I would like him to become a brave soldier like him when he grows up," Sapna Devi, mother of the newborn, said.
The No. 51 Squadron is to be retired by the end of September, "as per the plan", the defence sources said.
The announcement was greeted by thumping of desks by Pakistani lawmakers.
he world takes note of what India does and the nation has the power to "change dictionary meanings", Modi said.
"I want to dedicate my gold to Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman. He has inspired me," Punia tweeted after his victory.
Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman of the Indian Air Force who shot down a Pakistan air force F-16 during a dogfight on February 27 earlier this year, flew a MiG-21 Bison aircraft during the Air Force Day parade at Hindon Air Base. Three Mirage 2000 aircraft and two Su-30MKI fighter aircraft also flew in the 'Avenger formation'. The planes are being flown by pilots who took part in Balakot airstrike. Here are highlights from the parade.
Pakistan held Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman Wednesday after fighter jets of both nations engaged in an air battle following an unsuccessful attempt to target Indian military installations in retaliatory strikes.
The Congress leader tweeted his request to Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Pakistan PM Imran Khan's announcement that the IAF pilot would be released on March 1.
"The way he (Pakistan MP) is saying that 'pair kaanp rahe the' (his legs were trembling). It is because the military posture was very offensive... God forbid if there are military misadventure on 27th and hit some of our military installations, we were in a position to wipe out their forward brigades. They know what is our capability," he said.
IAF Chief Dhanoa and Abhinandan took a sortie on the MiG 21 jet from the Pathankot air base.
After attracting criticism on the social media for "taking credit", Khurshid on Sunday said that he had only "stated the truth".
Abhi comes from a family which has served the Indian Air Force since World War II when his grandfather Simhakutty was a member of the air force.
Pakistani officials handed over Varthaman to Indian officials, including from the IAF, at the Attari-Wagah Border.
Major Syed Moiz Abbas Shah, 37, was killed on Tuesday in a clash with the Taliban militants in the Sararogha area of South Waziristan near the Afghan border, according to a statement by the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), the media wing of the army.
A Pakistan TV channel mocked the captivity of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman in Pakistan.
The new patches given to the 51 Squadron of IAF depict a MiG21 in the foreground along with a red-coloured F-16 with 'Falcon Slayers' written on top and 'AMRAAM Dodgers' written at the bottom of it.
'The Air Force rules the skies.' Wing Commander K Dinesh (retd) recounts an encounter at Mumbai airport.
The IAF pilot revealed that he was not physically tortured by Pakistan military authorities.
Abhinandan will undergo debriefing which will include his physiological as well as a physical check-up in the presence of officials from the military and Intelligence agencies.
"India has not asked for any consular access to the IAF pilot. We want him back immediately," a source said.
During the meeting at a medical facility of the Indian Air Force, Varthaman is understood to have explained to Sitharaman details about his nearly 60 hour stay in Pakistan.
Air Marshal S Varthaman (retd) and Dr Shobha Varthaman were given a standing ovation as passengers made way for them in the early hours of Friday, ensuring that the couple got off first.
First reactions from Indian politicians and public figures over release of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman.
Foreign Office spokesman Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri said on Thursday that "there was no pressure on Pakistan at all regarding the release of Wing Commander Abhinandan."
Sadiq, who was the Speaker of the National Assembly during the PML-N government, made a similar statement earlier on Wednesday in Parliament that Foreign Minister Qureshi had said in an important meeting that if Varthaman was not released, India would attack Pakistan 'at 9 pm that night (sic)' and 'for God's sake we should let him go'.
Taking to Twitter, Tendulkar thanked the Indian soldiers for their services.
India said evidence on the use of F-16 fighter jets by Pakistan is there in the form of parts of AMRAAM missile recovered from the site, which is carried only by F-16 aircraft of the Pakistan Air Force.
Varthaman preferred to stay with his squadron in Srinagar than going to his family home in Chennai while on leave.
A village head says that after the IAF pilot landed on Pakistani soil he attempted to destroy documents in his possession.
'Recording of his video message caused delay in his handing over'
'Wing Commander Abhinandan would not have even worried if he was going to cross the LoC or not because he was not going to let go of a shot.'
'Till date there have been 482 accidents on account of failure of this aircraft and 171 IAF pilots have lost their lives.'
MiG-21s are one of the oldest aircraft in the Indian Air Force fleet. Most of them are on the verge of being phased out from the inventory of the air force.
A medical review board in the near future will assess the medical fitness of the Wing Commander and decide when he can resume his operations as a fighter pilot.
The IAF carried out 33 missions transporting 625 tonnes of treasury consignment after the demonetisation was announced, the ex-IAF chief said.
Indian model and actress Poonam Pandey gave Pakistan a befitting reply after one of their TV channels mocked the captivity of Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman in an ad to preview the upcoming Indo-Pak World Cup match.
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